Endless bucket conveyer ditch digging machine



March 9, 1954 A. H. GARDNER ETAL ENDLESS BUCKET CONVEYER DITCH DIGGING MACHINE Filed Aug. 31, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 A/mus Gardner Char/es W. Pewzhers /477ZUWMEYS March 1954 'A. H. GARDNER EIAL 2,671,282

ENDLESS BUCKET CONVEYER DITCH DIGGING MACHINE Filed Aug. 31, 1948 ,4 Sheets-Sheet 2 a g A/mus H. Gardner y Char/es W Fem/(hers A I INVENTORJ,

March 1954 A. H. GARDNER ETAL 2,671,282

ENDLESS BUCKET CONVEYER DITCH DIGGING MACHINE Filed Aug. 31, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 A/mus h. Gardner Ch ar/es l/\/. Pewfhers INVENTOR;

B 5% E. ZZZ/1%.

ATTORNEYS March 9, 1954 Q A, GARDNER EII'AL 2,671,282

ENDLESS BUCKET CONVEYER DITCH DIGGING MACHINE Filed Aug. 51, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 A/mus H. Gardner Char/e5 W Pe W zhe r5 INVENTORSI Patented Mar. 9, 1954 ENDLESS BUCKET CONVEYER DITCH- 'DIQGING Almus. H, Gardner and Charles. W. Pewthers,

Henderson, Tex., assignors I to Longhorn v Indus: f s 9. H aters! t. p vn sts Application August-31, 1948, Serial No, 46,994 2 q ei l ili-99 This invention relates to new and useful improvements in ditch digging machines One object of the invention is to provide an improved ditch digging machine which is relatively light in weight, small and; compact in constructicn with a low overhead. clearance, whereby said machine may be efilciently operated in close areas or spaces in which the usual larger and heavier machines, now in general use, cannot be mpl yed An important objectof the. invention is to providean i proved ditch digging machine, wherein the digging boom is disposed in a forward and downward direction with respect to. the forward. movement oi the. machine so that the force created by the digging action of themachineis in a direction which urges or holds the rear. end. of the, machine downwardly against the ground,

thereby making it possible to. construct the.

machine of extremely. light weight, as compared to the. heavy weight of this type. of machine. now in general use; the. light weight of. the machine also permitting pneumatic or rubber. tires to be employed, whereby the machine maybe operated under its own power over all roads and the. necessity of hauling or transporting the same on atruck or vehicle is eliminated.

Another object or the invention isto provide a ditch digging machineof thecharacter described, having an improved. bucket assembly mounted on the. di ging. boom, which assembly is so constructed that there is nov packing of the dirt or mud and the digging elements of the buckets are,

in, effect, selfcleaning. which facilitates more.

efficient di g.

A particular object of the. invention is to provide an improved ditcher, of the character. described, wherein the. digging buckets are mounted on the. digging boom in such manner that the. centrifugal force developed by. the buckets as they pass. around the end or the-Iboom. is utilized to effectively discharge the contents thereof to. empty said buckets} said digging buckets having forwardly disposed digging. ele. ments and outwardly flared side digging teeth orbl-ades, the. latter functioning to. shave or. remove the earth at the sides of the. ditch being formed by. themachine to assure efficient operation.

Still another object or the invention isto pro.- vide. an improved ditch digging machine wherein the. digging boom and bucket mounting is such that the diggingbuckets. "tunnel under: or rip. out the earth with the. result thatthe actual digging causesv a downward fierce, to. be. constantly elicited: on the. machine to prevent, limiting 013- said 2. machine, even though: relatively. light weight, underv hard or difficult digging conditions.

A" specific object of the invention provide an improved mobile ditcher, of the character.

described, wherein the rear wheels of the. machine, ate mounted. to permit individual or independent adjustment of each wheel in a vertical plane, whereby the machine maybe. operated with. the rear. wheels ondifferent offset horizontal. planes or on inclined terrain whiledigging,- a

vertical ditch.

Other and further objects of this invention will appear-from the following description In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the instant specification, are to be read; in. conjunction. therewithand wherein likereference numerals are employed to designate like parts in the various views:

' Figure 1 is. a side. elevation of a ditch digging machine, constructed in"accordance wi thj the; invention,

Figure 2. is a plan view, with. certain parts, removed to clearly illustrate the. drivingconnecy mans,

Figure 3. is a side elevation of the digging. boom and bucket assembly,

Figure 4, is a bottom view of the. assemblyshown mE g Figure 5 isv a side elevation of the chuteon the ggi g b Figured is an end elevation thereof,

Figure 7 is an isometric view of the mounting for one of the rear wheels,

Figure'8 is an enlarged side elevation of the digging and receiving buckets,

Fi u 9 is w ak m. und rs de of: thepartsshown in Figure 8, and

Figure 10 is a transverse sectional view, of, the. dirt removing conveyor, taken on the. line I,0.I0, of: Figure 2.

In the drawings, the numeral It, designates, the main frame. of. the improved ditch digging. a n and i u e n itud n ly ext ndin base. members H and upper angle. members. It; which are connected in any suitable fashion by. upright connecting angles or members I 3. lI-he members it and I2 on each side of the. machine are connected with each other by transverse connecting. channels or bars M and any. desired. number of the. transverse connecting members. may be provided to form a rigid frame structure. It is.

desirable that all of "the. various. members be. welded or otherwise Sectiredtogetheil,and'it is obvious that the particulaiadetailsof construc tion oftheframe, are subject to variation".

The forward end of the frame is supported by a pair of relatively small front wheels [5, while the rear portion of the frame is supported by enlarged rear drive wheel 16. The rear Wheels [6 are mounted for vertical adjustment and as is clearly shown in Figure 7, each wheel is mounted upon a stub axle H, which extends outwardly from a supporting block l8. The supporting block 18 is mounted for sliding movement between upright supports l9, the vertical edge portions of said block being movable within vertical slots 20 formed in the upright I9. An adjusting screw 2| is threaded through a collar 22, which is welded or otherwise secured to the upper angle member l2 of the frame and the lower end of the screw 2| bears against an outwardly extending lug 23 which is secured to the supporting block l8. It is apparent that with each rear wheel [6 mounted upon its respective axle, the

weight of the frame tends to move the block I8 upwardly within the upright l9, and the elongate adjusting screw 2! limits such upward movement. By rotating the screw 2| to move said screw upwardly, a further upward movement of the block l8 and its respective wheel [6 may be effected with respect to the frame Hi. In this manner, the vertical disposition of the rear wheels [6 may be changed, whereby the machine may travel over inclined terrain or over an area where each rear wheel is disposed in a different horizontal plane.

Each rear wheel I6 has a driving sprocket 24 secured to its inner surface and an endless drive chain 25 passes over this sprocket as well as over a drive gear 26 which is mounted on a drive shaft 21 at the upper portion of the frame ID. The drive shaft 21 extends transversely across the frame (Figure 2) and has the drive gear 26 secured to its ends outside of the frame. The drive shaft 2! is driven through a suitable speed reduction gearing 28, drive chain 29, manually controlled transmission 36 and jack shaft 3| by the main drive shaft 32 of a suitable engine 33. The engine drive shaft has connection with the jack shaft through drive pulleys and belts 34, and a suitable variable speed transmission 35 may be connected in the jack shaft 3|. Thus, when the transmission 30 is properly manipulated, a rotation is imparted to the drive gears 26 and through the chain 25 and sprocket 24, a

rotation is transmitted to the rear wheels [6 of the machine. The drive chain 25 which surrounds the sprocket 24 and drive gear 26 of each wheel is provided with sufficient slack to permit the vertical adjustment of each wheel, and in order to maintain said chain taut during the driving connection, a suitable idler gear 36 which is maintained under constant tension by a spring 31 engages said chain (Figure 1).

A digging boom and bucket assembly A is mounted within the frame I6 and has its upper end suspended from a transversely extending shaft 38 which is mounted between the rear uprights 13 of said frame. The assembly A is adapted to be lowered into the position shown in Figure 1, in which position the lower portion of said assembly engages the earth, wherein the ditch is to be formed. In such position, the boom assembly is directed downwardly and forwardly within said frame. The assembly includes an endless chain B on which buckets C are mounted and said chain passes over sprockets 39, which, as will be described, are mounted at'each'end' of assembly A.. For imparting rotation to the upper sprocket 39 to transmit mgtion to the buckets C and C, the shaft 38 on which the upper sprocket is mounted extends outwardly to one side of the frame and has a drive gear 49 secured thereto (Figure 2). The gear 40 is rotated through a chain drive 4!, gear box 42, and chain drive 43, the latter being connected or driven by a gear 44 mounted on the main drive shaft 32 of the engine. A suitable manually controlled transmission 45 is connected in the drive shaft 32, whereby a control of the movement of the buckets of the assembly A may be had.

Lowering and raising of the asembly A is controlled by a lifting cable 46 which has one end wound around a winch or drum 41, which is mounted in an upright support 48 secured to the top of the frame H]. An enlarged gear 49 is secured to the winch or drum shaft and is adapted to mesh with an operating pinion 50 which is controlled by a hand crank 5|. The free end of the cable 46 passes over a roller secured to the assembly A and is then attached to one of the upper frame members [2; obviously, when the winch or drum 4'! is actuated, the cable is wound upon or unwound from said drum with the result that the assembly A may be lowered or raised.

When the boom and bucket assembly A has been lowered into digging position as illustrated in Figure 1, its lower portion is directed forwardly and downwardly with respect to the forward movement of the machine. Upon forward movement of the machine and operation of the buckets C, earth is removed and carried upwardly by said buckets. This earth or dirt is discharged from the buckets by the centrifugal force which is developed as said buckets move over the upper sprocket 39. The discharged earth falls downwardly through a hood or enclosure 52, which is mounted on the rear end of the frame l0. Beneath the hood or enclosure is an endless conveyor 53 which extends transversely across the rear end of the machine. This conveyor is clearly shown in Figure 10 and comprises adjustable side plates 54 and 55 having a belt conveyor 56 disposed therebetween. The belt conveyor 56 passes around rollers 5'! mounted on shafts 58 having their ends journalled in the adjustable side plates 54 and 55. The conveyor 56 functions to carry the dirt deposited thereon transversely of the rear end of the machine and to deposit said dirt at one side of the machine. If desired, a suitable shield 59 may be secured to the side plates 55 at the discharge end of the belt conveyor, whereby the dirt will be properly discharged in a single row as the machine moves forwardly.

For driving the belt conveyor 56, one of the shafts 58 is extended and has a drive sprocket 60 mounted thereon. An endless chain 5| connects the sprocket with a driving gear 62 which is mounted upon a jack shaft 63. The jack shaft is, in turn, driven by a suitable chain drive 64 which has connection with the main drive shaft 32 of the engine 33.

The particular disposition of the boom assembly A which, as has been pointed out, is forwardly and downwardly of the machine, causes the buckets to tunnel under or rip out the earth. Thus, the

.actual digging operation causes a downward force to be exerted on the rear portion of them'achine,

and the harder the digging, the greater is the pull on said machine to hold the rear wheels firmly in engagement with the ground. With this arrangement the entire unit may be made relatively light in weight, as compared to the general type of machines of this character'now in general use. As an example, the particular machine illustrated and described herein is capable ofdigging a ditch 8 to 1-2inches in width with a maximum depth of 3 /2 feet, and-the entire weight of such machine is approximately 5,095 pounds. Other machines now in gen'eral'use for performing this digging operation weigh in the neighborhood of 19,000 to 15,000 pounds. The necessity for this increased weight is occasioned by the fact that the digging boom in the normal machine projects rearwardly and downwardly behind said machine, and the digging operation tends to lift the rear end of the machine, rather than to hold it down as is th'e case in the present machine.

The particular construction of the boomand bucket assembly A is illustrated in Figures 3-5, 8 and 9, and said-assembly includes a fabricated boom which is constructed of side plates 55, a bottom plate 5% and a top plate 6?, these plates being welded together to form a substantially square supporting element. Offset brackets 68 are secured to the upper portion of the boom and have bearing plates 59 fastened to their outer offset ends. The-shaft 38 on which the upper sprocket 39 is mounted extends through thebearingplates 69 and obviously with this arrangement the boom is suspended for rotation from shaft 38.

The lower sprocket 39 of the assembly A is mounted on a shaft it which has its ends sup ported within. one extremity the elongated supporting bars ii. As is clearly shown in Figures 3 and 4, the bars ii overlie the sides (Ed-of the boom and are connected thereto by bolts E? which pass through elongate slots E3 in said bars and through openings '54 in the sides of said boom. Because of the slots l3, it is apparent that the bars H may be moved oradjustedlongitudinally with respect to the boom and for effecting this adjustment, each bar H has an adjusting screw iii associated therewith. Each adjusting screw 75 is threaded within a collar 16 which extends outwardly from the side plate 85 of the boom. By loosening the bolts 12 and adjusting the screw 15, the lower sprocket 39 of the assembly may be moved relative to the end of the boom and after proper adjustment, the bolts '12 are again tightened. The endless chain B passes over the sprocket 39 and by providing the adjustment of the lower sprocket, said chain may be kept taut at all times.

The buckets C are mounted on the chain B and each link ll of the chain is formed with an outwardly directed flange 78 (Figure 6) to which the bucket is welded or otherwise secured; as is clearly shown in Figure 8, each bucket has its forward end secured to the flange whereby the fulcrum or point of swinging as the bucket travels around the sprockets is toward the forward or leading end of the bucket. The rear or trailing end of the bucket is therefore caused to travel at a faster rate around the sprockets and this movement is utilized, as will be explained, to assure emptying of the buckets as they pass around the upper sprocket 39.

With the buckets secured to the chain conveyor B, said buckets travel around the boom when the conveyor is operated. The buckets move through a longitudinal chute 18a which is secured to the upper or top plate 61 of the boom and which receives any loose dirt which may be carried upwardly. A suitable guard plate 65a 6 (Figure'Q is secured to 'the bott'om fit "ofthe boom and has a V-shaped-notch'fieb-disposed adjacent the upper sprocket '39.

Each digging bucket comprises spaced side walls 79, a bottom and'a'rear closed end'tlla. The forward or leading end of the bottom'fill of each bucket is welded or otherwise secured to the flange 18 of the conveyor chain B. A digging bladeti spans the open top of the bucket and is provided with digging teeth 82' which are directed forwardly of the blade. In addition certain of the bucketsC are each provided with'fiared digging teeth 83 located at each side thereof and the number of buckets provided with the'side teeth is optional. Ithas beenfound that satisfactory operation may be obtained by providing the side teeth 83 on every third bucket but the invention isnot to belimitedto this arrangement sinceif desired, every bucket may have said side teeth.

In operation of the boom and bucket assembly A, the assembly is disposed forwardly and downwardly with respect to the forward movement of the machine and the chain B which has the buckets attached thereto travels in the direction of the'arrow in Figure 1. As each digging bucket engages the earth, its digging blades which include the forwardly directed digging teeth 32 remove the earth which is directed rearwardly within said bucket. Actually, the buckets tunnel under or rip out the earth and it is'this action which applies a downward force to the boom assembly into the machine, whereby the rear portion of said machine is maintained inengagement with the ground no matter how hard the digging "may be. A major portion of the digging is done as the buckets move upwardly from point D to point D in Figure l and as the earth is removed, it falls into the buckets. This arrangement prevents packing of the dirt in the buckets, particularly when operating in soft and sticky earth.

At the same time that the forwardteeth 82 of the digging blades are removing the earth, the flared sideteeth B3 on the side wall "d9 of certain of the buckets shave off chips of earth, which chips fall loosely to the bottom of the bucket. 'Ihismeans that the sides of the ditch are actually sheared or shaved by the flared side teeth 83 and assures that the walls of the ditch will be substantially smooth.

As'each bucket performs i-ts digging operation, it moves upwardly along the boom and the dirt which has been removed therefrom and has fallen or passed into the said buckets is carried to the top of the boom assembly. As the receiving buckets pass over the upper sprocket 39, the particular mounting of each bucket nearer its forward end develops a considerable centrifugal force at the rear or trailing end of the bucket. Obviously, the rear end of each bucket will be flipped or given a sudden rapid turning motion around the upper sprocket to assure efficient and complete discharge of the contents of said bucket. The dirt is discharged into the hood 52 and is deposited upon the belt conveyor 55. This conveyor, as has been explained, carries the dirt to one side of the machine and deposits the same in a row behind said machine. After the digging operation is complete, the winch or drum 4'! is actuated to lift the boom assembly A upwardly by means of the lifting cable 46, and this upward movement draws the boom into a position between the side members I! and I2 of the frame Ill. The assembly A is raised a sufficient distance so that it is wholly within the frame so that the machine may be readily moved to other locations.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that a simple compact device for digging ditches is provided. Because of a particular digging action and disposition of the boom, the machine may be made relatively light in weight, since the weight of the machine is not depended upon to maintain the rear end thereof intimate with the ground. Being light in weight and relatively small in size, the machine is extremely mobile, and is also adaptable for use in small areas or spaces and in places where low overhead clearance is had. Because of its small compact size, it is capable of operating with extremely sharp turns or turns of small radius. The adjustability of the rear wheel mountings make the machine exceptionally practical in operating on inclined terrain or slopes while still maintaining the frame and the ditch formed thereby truly vertical. All of the parts of the machine are operated from the single engine 33 through the various transmissions and drive connections as illustrated in Figure 2, which arrangement increases the simplicity. It is noted that the various drive connections to the operating elements include suitable clutches which are shown in the drawings but which have not been described because such clutches are usual in this type of drive mechanism. An important feature of the invention is the arrangement of the digging buckets which, as explained, prevents the packing of dirt therein; also, the mounting of the buckets on the chain allows the centrifugal force, which is developed in each bucket travelling around the sprocket, to be utilized in assuring emptying of said bucket.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory thereof and various changes in the size, shape and materials, as well as in the details of the illustrated construction may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having described the invention, we claim:

1. A ditch digging machine comprising, a substantially rectangular frame having an upper horizontal end, a lower horizontal end, a vertical rear end, and a vertical forward end, said vertical rear end including a pair of vertical members spaced horizontally with respect to each other, said upper horizontal end including a pair of horizontal members spaced horizontally with respect to each other, said lower horizontal end including a pair of horizontal members spaced horizontally with respect to each other to leave an open unobstructed space therebetween, a horizontal pivot rod connected to and extending between said vertical members, an elongate digging boom having its upper end pivotally connected to said horizontal pivot rod for vertical swinging movement from a digging position extending downwardly below said lower horizontal members to a retracted position above said lower horizontal members but below said upper end of said frame and within the confines of said forward end and said rear end of said frame, a wheel support on each side of said frame extending between and connected to the upper and lower ends of said frame, a stub axle mounted on each wheel support and extending horizontally therefrom so that said frame is open and free from obstruction below its upper end for enabling said boom to be pivotally moved into said retracted position, and a wheel on each stub axle to support said frame and maintain the lower end thereof above the ground.

2. The structure set forth in claim 1, including means for swinging said boom about said pivot rod from its lowered digging position to its raised retracted position.

ALMUS H. GARDNER.

CHARLES W. PEWTHERS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Niunber Name Date 180,809 Whittaker Aug. 8, 1878 333,114 Dougine Dec. 29, 1885 415,236 Avery Nov. 19, 1889 1,090,770 Wheelwright Mar. 17, 1914 1,187,001 Lutz June 13, 1916 1,363,711 Bodenner Dec. 28, 1920 1,428,055 Paul Sept. 5, 1922 1,466,568 Stahl et a1 Aug. 28, 1923 1,577,546 Spear Mar. 23, 1926 1,717,476 Topping June 18, 1929 2,480,909 Davis Sept. 6, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 49,965 Sweden Aug. 31, 1921 240,409 Switzerland June 1, 1946 

